


Goodbyes

by annitine



Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-17
Updated: 2019-05-17
Packaged: 2020-03-07 00:39:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18862222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annitine/pseuds/annitine
Summary: One-shot angst AU where Clementine is bitten at the bridge and she has to say goodbye to Louis, Aj and Tenn.





	Goodbyes

BANG

Clementine, hiding in cover of the truck from Minerva, holding off the walkers as Louis rushes the kids across the gap in the bridge

She goes to take shots at the walkers closing in around the truck, and instead meets with Minnie's boot, knocking her to the floor 

"Fuck" Clem huffs

As Minnie brings her axe to strike Clem she rolls away and a walker grabs onto her foot

Louis aims his bow but is rushed up the wall by Minerva and he falls against the wood

"You are NOT his family!" Minerva yelps, gun pointed at Clementine

She goes to shoot and realizes she's missing bullets

Clem jams the walker off and with the time Minnie takes reloading, she growls

"You're just something in my way" before Clementine lifts herself up to fight for the gun

Its quick but intense, they share a moment burning into each other's eyes

She wants Clementine dead

Clementine wants everyone home, safe.

Clementine lunges into the Minnie and butts heads with her, sending her to the floor and leaving Clem with the gun

She brings it to the half dead girls head, who spits at her just as she fires

After Clem misses her shot Minnie scrambles for her axe and in a desperate attempt to get Clementine out of her way, she lands a gouging slice in Clementine's lower leg

Clementine yelps as she finds herself on the hard, cold wood bleeding out of her jeans and boot, scooting back to buy time from the girl, axe bound, fury and x's in her eyes ready to finish her, off, ready to get her brother back

Clem's eyes meet the abandoned gun and her fingers flex for it

"I'm taking Tenn home!" echoes throughout the bridge, similar to the gunshot sounded before

"'I'm going ho-"

And another goes off into Minnie's arm, causing her to tumble back into the group of walkers waiting along the truck

They take hold of her and instantly start feeding on her graciously wounded body

Now, Louis, Tenn and Aj are grouped up on the other side of the bridge and Clem gains the strength to make it over herself

"Behind you!" Aj cries seconds too late as Minnie takes hold of Clementine's arm in her last minutes of consciousness

"You're coming down with me" she growls, almost lifeless with Clem's hand around her wrist trying to free herself from her grasp

Minnie's strength drops and Clem uses her arm to toss her onto the ground and equip her gun

BANG

Without hesitation a bullet makes it's way between Minerva's eyes

Clementine reaches for the axe left on the ground and makes a crutch of it to get herself up

But a walker was faster, and yanked her by her shoulders before diving its rotting teeth into her neck

She manages to shoot it in the head, freeing herself from another undead grasp, then giving her the chance to use her last bits of strength and take her to the other side of the bridge

But, she was bit

Tenn knew, Aj knew

Louis knew

And Clem tried picking herself up again

"It'll be fine.. I'll be okay" Clem smiles

"Are you kidding me?!" Tenn and Aj rush to her side making her sit down

Louis crouches down and locks eyes with Clementine, who has a big, deep, ugy hole in the side of her neck

She smiles at him

"We'll keep moving forward.." she drags

"Clem.. no" Louis takes her in his arms, cradling her with tears welling up

He sucks it up

"You're bit."

"I am.." she softly acknowledges

"Fuck... fuck.. not you."

Tenn looks at Aj, pain in his eyes on the verge of bursting into tears himself

Aj was angry, he didn't know who to be mad at, Minnie got Clem bit, but Minnie's dead now

What will he do?

Clem tried to keep her smile for Louis but Louis couldn't handle it

Why her? Of all people why did it have to be her? He thought

Hardly an hour ago they were planning their future, a huge purple place to call home, skylight and all

They were joking around, she was laughing

They were going to be home

But it wasn't home, not without her

Louis is shaking, pulling Clementine even closer to him while she's conscious and he pulls away as she asks one thing

"Please go, the herd is coming in on us"

"I'm not going to leave you like this, over my dead body!"

She pauses, blinks at Tenn and Aj, and looks back at Louis

"Thank you so much, for everything" she whispers

"No.. I didn't..." Louis shakes his head

"I don't know what I'll do.. you helped me, I grew because of y-"

She interrupts

"You'll keep growing. I know you will, I know you have it in you..." and her eyes flutter

"I-I"

She cuts him off again, hand on his arm

"I'm gonna miss you, weirdo"

"I'm gonna miss you too.." he trails

"I can die peacefully now" she giggles

"We.. we've got to go" Tenn frowns

"We're not leaving her like this! Louis said so too" Aj reminds him

Louis has kept his cool until now, he looks at Tenn and Aj with red, swelled eyes still holding all of those tears

"Aj, my little goofball" Clem calls out

Aj steps closer to Clementine, shaking himself

"Do you think you could be a good boy, stay strong for Louis and everyone back home?"

Aj balls fists and drops his head, he didn't want Clem to see him cry

"I will, for you" he croaks. And Tenn follows behind with a hand on his back, trying his best to comfort him

"I love you Clementine.. so much" Louis whispers, almost unable to get that last part out

"I love you so much more" Clem says, pulling him in for one more hug

Tenn picks up the gun and looks at Aj, and nods as he takes it.

"Louis.. do you want me to.."

Louis looks up at him before he finishes and takes one more look at Clementine

She's pale.. she's losing consciousness, but she's still alive.

Louis leans in for a kiss on the head before taking the gun from Aj

"God, I'm gonna miss you so much

Clem tilts her head and smiles

"Just build that big ol house for me, all nine hundred."

"And fourteen." He replies, growing a smile of his own

He quickly loses it as he turns and looks to the ground, hands shaking, finger on the trigger

"Louis I ca-" Aj tries to interject

"No, I can do it" Louis says

He didn't think he'd ever have to.

But here he is

Saying his goodbyes to his first love

The inspiration to his newfound strength

"G..Goodbye Clem."

The one who listened to the jokes

The music

And him. All of it

She's on the ground half dead and the only thing he can think is why didn't he save her

Why didn't he wait for her to be over before jumping across himself

How could he have saved her?

"Goodbye Lou" interrupted these thoughts

"Aj, Tenn..."

"Don't watch" Louis finishes

And he winces as the last gunshot goes off

He slumps over

He feels defeated, but he has Tenn and Aj to remind him

"The herd is gonna come"

"Don't.. don't look back. You'll feel worse" Tenn looks up at Louis, whos trying to hide tears streaming down his face

He looks back anyways

Fuck. She looks terrible

Tears keep streaming, he doesn't even bother to wipe them as they make their way back to the school

When they arrive there are none left

When they enter everyone buzzes about Clementine.

Aj has to spare the news.

They try and talk to Louis but he goes straight to the music room

Straight to his piano, where he traces the C and L carved and cased in a heart

He lowers his head on the keys and whines at the terrible sound they make, being played all at ones

He inhales, shaky, and exhales even shakier

He then lifts his head and begins to play 'Clementine'


End file.
